Septic tank



M. S. BUTLER Aug. 19, 1952 SEPTIC TANK 2 SHEETS--SHEET 1 Filed Aug. 1, 1950 M. S. BUTLER Aug. 19,- 1952 SEPTIC TANK 2 SHEETSSHEET 2 Filed Aug. 1, 1950 Patented Aug. 19, 1952 SEPTIC TANK Milton s. Butler, SoutlrBraintree, Mass. Application August 1, 1950, Serial No. 177,023 (01. 72-4)) 3 Claims. 1

This invention relates to an improved sewage receptacle of the type in which a plurality of side wall sections are assembled adjacent one another-and in interlocking relation to form a built-up type of tank body which can be easily assembled in any desired locality and ma wide variety of shapes and sizes.

It is a general object 'of the invention therefore" to improve sewage tank construction and to devise a fabricated retaining body which can be quickly, cheaply and easily assembled by workmen employing standard forms of cast materials. Another object of the invention is to provide'a form of side wall section which can be cast from materials such as cement in a shape and'weight such that the sections can be readily handled by a Workman without too much difficulty. I

'It is a further object of the invention to devise a fabricated sectional sewage tank which ineludes brace members arranged to resist inward collapsing of the sections and thus cooperate to maintain the sections in an" upright position against'the lateral thrust of compacted portions of soil packed around the outer sides of the wall sections.

These and other objects and novel features will'be more fully understood and appreciated from the following description of a preferred embodiment of the invention, selected for. purposes of'ill'ustration and'shown in the accompanying drawings in which Fig. l is a fragmentary perspective view illustrating a step of laying foundation members in the erection of the'tank of the invention; Fig. 2 is another fragmentary perspective view illustrating the step of placing initial side wall sections in an upright position on the foundation shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is another perspective view illustrating the installation of additional wall sections and the further introduction of a transverse brace member; 7 Fig. 4 is another perspective view showing the addition of additional wall sections and also the arrangement of longitudinal brace members relative to the transverse brace members and adjacent wall section surfaces;

Fig. 5 is .a similar view suggesting the beginning of a second layer or tier of side wall sections and further showing the applicationof compacted soil portions exterior to the side wall sections;

Fig. 6 is another perspective view further showing a built-up tank structure and also in- 'dicating one suitable means of the tank enclosure;

Fig. 7 is a cross section taken on the line 1- of Fig. 6;

for covering the top Fig. 8 is a detail fragmentary perspective view of a brace construction, and

Fig. 9 is a fragmentary perspective viewof a cover member having a sewage inlet pipe connected thereto.

The fabricated tank construction ofthe in-- vention is designed primarilyto simplify handling and installation and to this end is made up brace members which cooperate with the'lateral thrust of the compacted soil body to provide a unique strengthening feature.

Thus in the structure shown in Fig. l of the drawings, numeral It refers tolongitudinal base members which are preferably formed of a substance such as concrete, cast in some suitable manner as by pouring cement into a wooden frame. The longitudinal base members are designed with relatively wide bottom surfaces vided with shoulders 18. the proportions being chosen so that these transverse base members may be fitted between the longitudinal base members in the manner suggested in Fig; 1.

In laying a bottom framework from these base members it is intended that there be left exposed bottom drainage area to be constituted by the soil itself, and therefore it should be understood that at some desired point whereithe tank is to be erected, the soil will havebeen excavated to provide an enclosure with a relatively fla bottom area.

It is preferable that the-bottom framework be level and be placed on a relatively firm footing. One desirable procedure, therefore, is to first apply a body of cement 20 along the region OFFICE to be occupied by the framework but leaving an uncovered soil area 22 as shown in Fig. 1. The base members are then set in place in the cement and leveled.

The side wall sections 24 are next mounted individually upon the framework as suggested for example in Fig. 2, with a bottom edge of each section being located on a top surface 26 of base 10, and with the inner lower surface of each wall section resting against respective shoulder portions (2.

The wall sections 24 are preferably formed of concrete or other substance which is capable of being cast or molded, and each section is of the same form, being substantially rectangular in shape to constitute relatively thin slabs. It is are chosen to correspond to the Width and depth of shouldered portions 30 of transverse brace members 32. This proportionate relationship is chosen to facilitate mountin of the transverse brace members 32 between oppositely located sidewall sections on their respective shouldered portions 28 as illustrated in Fig. 3.

When thus located, it will be observed that the shoulders 30 fit snugly upon respective shoulders 28, and the upper surface of a shoulder 30 in every case lies in the same plane with an upper adjacent surface of a respective wall section. At the same time, it should be noted that the length of each shouldered portion 30 exceeds the thickness of an adjacent wall section at both ends of the brace members with the result that there is defined an intermediate relatively thicker section 34.

Figure 4 illustrates the tank construction carried a step further with two opposite pairs of side wallsections 24 in place, and held'in internally braced position by means of two transverse braces 32 and two longitudinal braces 33. The latter members are formed in the same way as the transverse braces with shouldered extremities and relatively thick intermediate portions 40.

Attention is directed to the fact that whereas in the case of the transverse braces, their intermediate thick portions 34 extend vertically upwardly above the shouldered ends 30; in the case of the longitudinal braces, their intermediate thick portions project vertically downwardly below the shouldered ends 38.

The relative arrangement of the braces described makes it possible. to provide'continuous projecting bearing edges at the ends of the tank, in which bearing edges the ends of the longitudinal braces lie in the same plane with the outer surfaces of the transverse braces, while at the sides of the tank there are achieved continous projecting bearing edges formed entirely by the outer surfaces of the longitudinal braces.

It will also be seen that the downwardly projecting intermediate portions of the longitudinal braces furnish bearing edges for the upper extremities of adjacent side wall sections, which have already been put in place. The holding action of the longitudinal braces is thereafter increased by the fact that the shouldered ends of these longitudinal braces become interlocked between the transverse braces and the next row of side wall sections which are provided. Thus the more lateral pressure is exerted by surrounding portions of soil, the more solidly the braces become wedged in place.

In Fig. 5, wall sections 42 are shown in place at the end of the tank construction and this figure further illustrates how the inner surfaces of these wall sections 42 come to bear snugly against the adjacent tranverse brace surfaces and included ends of longitudinal braces. In this case also the whole assembly is solidly held together by the lateral thrust of the compacted body of soil 44, the latter member having been diagrammatically indicated in this figure.

There is further suggested in Fig. 5 the start of forming a second row of wall sections wherein it will be seen that the upwardly projecting portions of the longitudinal braces furnish bearing edges for receiving thereagainst the lower ends of side wall sections 24 forming the'second row. Similarly, from an inspection of Fig. 5, it will be seen that a second rowof end wall sections are placed edge to edge upon the first row of end sections, and the lower ends of the second row of sections becomes supported against adjacent transverse braces and included extremities of the longitudinal braces. I.

Any desired number of rows of sections may be employed to form a required size of tank, and it will be apparent that the sections may be added to or extended in any desired direction to form square, rectangular, or other angular formations of enclosures. At the upper side of the tank, I provide cover members 48 and 50 which are laid across the top of the tank edges. In laying up the last section of side walls, which section is to receive the covers however, it will be seen that the transverse braces are turned over so that their thick intermediate portions project downwardly as noted in Fig. 6, and the longitudinal braces are left out entirely, thus providing a fiat upper bearing surface upon which the cover sections may be supported as shown. At some desired point, as for example in cover 50, Fig. 9, I may provide an inlet pipe 52 through which sewage is lead into the tank. Various other inlet pipe arrangements may be resorted to.

In Figure 8, I have shown in detail a reinforced type of brace element which constitutes a preferred form of brace member and includes a pair of reinforcing rods 56 which are cast or molded directly in the brace members, particularly for the purpose of imparting greater strength at the relieved shouldered portions at either end of the brace.

The particular interlocking arrangement of the braces and side wall sections thus alfords reinforcement in two directions to forces seeking to collapse the wall sections such as the lateral thrust of surrounding soil portions, and in fact the pressure of the surrounding soil portions cooperates with the braces to solidly anchor the side wall sections in a fixed position. Thus the transverse braces being wedged between the two longitudinal braces at their intermediate thick portions, when subjected to compressive forces on two sides of the tank, cannot yield. Similarly, when forces are directed against the end wall sections of the tank, each longitudinal brace is wedged between a pair of transverse braces. It is also pointed out that at each point of junction of a sidewall with a brace, there is a right-angle contact which functions to seal the tank from entry of soil particles therein.

This application is a continuation-in-part of my earlier application Ser. No. 753,728, filed June '10, 1947.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to protect by Letters Patent, is:

1. An improved sectional type sewage tank construction for use in a sewage excavation, comprising a tank body having vertical side walls and vertical end walls extending therebetween, said side and end walls adapted to be located against the vertical surfaces of the sewage excavation and to be externally supported thereby, said side walls including a plurality of courses of preformed slab elements located one above another, the slab elements of each course being arranged in an upright position with adjacent vertical edges lying in abutting relationship, each of said slab elements of the said side walls being formed with upper rabbeted corners, a plurality of transverse brace members constructed and arranged so as to extend between said side Walls of the tank and being supported on the rabbeted corners of the said slab elements of respective side walls, each of said transverse brace members being rabbeted to form relieved ends and intermediate shoulders which project above the relieved ends, said transverse brace shoulders occurring in spaced relation to inner side wall surfaces of the tank to define slots, a plurality of longitudinal brace members mounted in the slots on the relieved portions of the transverse brace members and snugly received between the inner surfaces of respective side wall slabs and the transverse brace shoulders to hold these members in locked relationship to one another, and said transverse and longitudinal brace members presenting outer surfaces constituting abutment edges against which succeeding courses of said side wall slabs may be laterally supported.

2. A structure as defined in claim 1, in which one or more of the brace members are provided with longitudinally disposed reinforcing rod means, said rod means extending from onev of the said relieved ends of a brace member to the opposite relieved end thereof.

3. An improved sectional type sewage tank construction for use in a sewage excavation, comprising a tank body having vertical side walls and end walls extending therebetween, said side and end walls adapted to be located against the vertical surfaces of the sewage excavation and to be externally supported thereby, said side walls including a'plurality of courses of preformed slab elements located one above another, the slab elements of each course being arranged in an upright position with adjacent vertical edges lying in abutting relationship, each of said slab elements of the said side walls being formed with upper rabbeted corners, a plurality of transverse brace members constructed and arranged so as to extend between the sides of the tank and supported on the rabbeted corners of said side wall slab elements, each of said transverse brace members being rabbeted to form relieved ends and intermediate shoulders which project above the relieved ends, said transverse brace shoulders occurring in spaced relation to inner Wall surfaces of the tank to define slots, a plurality of longitudinal brace members mounted in the slots on the relieved portions of the transverse brace members and snugly received between the side wall slabs and the transverse brace shoulders to hold these members in locked relationship to one another, said braces at their outer surfaces constituting retaining edges against which succeeding courses of said side wall slabs may be laterally supported, and said tank further including a cover formed of horizontally disposed slabs and an inlet pipe connected therethroug h.

MILTON S. BUTLER.

Babbitt, Sewerage and Sewage Treatment, 6th Edition, (1947), DD. 194-197, 207.

Farmers Bulletin No. 1227, U. S. Dept. of Agriculture, Sewage and Sewerage of Farm Homes," rev. 1928, pp. 20-21.

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